Apparently, Apple has made a humongous mistake in cloning Shenzen’s Great Long Brother Industrial’s P88 Tablet. The company might sue Apple!

President Wu Xiaolong: “I was very angry and flabbergasted when I saw the news of the iPad presentation two days ago… It is certainly our design. They’ve stolen because we present our P88 to everyone six months ago at the IFA (International Electronics Fair in Berlin).”

He says the P88 (shown above) is identical with the Apple iPad, which was recently announced and slated for a March release. The P88 runs Windows 7 and costs $525, signficantly more than the lowest-range iPad. Though Great Long Brother has applied a patent for the P88 tablet, Chinese authorities take a year before they give approval.

[site, source, via shanghailist]

[via mashable]

Winterboard is used to install the The Simple iPad theme while Shrink is needed to reduce the size of the icons. Check out the video above for the full instructions on how to go about porting the whole iPad experience to your iPhone/iPod Touch. Jailbreaking, first and foremost, is obviously a requirement here.

For those who need help in jailbreaking their iPhone/iPod Touch, you can try out the Geohot’s purplera1n iPhone 3G S jailbreak or the iPhone 3.1.2 PwnageTool from the iPhone Dev Team.

[redmond pie via engadget]

iPhone jailbreaker chpwn was also able to run ProSwitcher and Backgrounder on the iPad which will definitely come in handy if and when an iPad jailbreak does get released.

iPhone jailbreak developer Ryan Petrich, for his part, discovered that the new iPhone firmware also comes with a spell checker, handwriting recognition, a variety of dictionaries, and support for external displays. Of course, all these mean nothing if it doesn’t get released to the public, but it does serve as a pretty good tease at what could eventually be the future of the iPad and iPhone.

[via engadget]

Another Game Changer?

We’ve been holding our breath for this, guys, and here it is: the Apple iPad. Only problem is that it isn’t exactly what we expected. Actually it is, just take a look at our previous posts on the iTablet, but we never really took any of it seriously. Come on, won’t the cool cats at Apple simply outdo any fanboy’s imagination, even if they actually have to think of making actual hardware, they’ve proven that with the iPhone? We expected Cupertino to surprise us again, capture our hearts in wonder and amazement. It’s been too long, over two years since iPhone was announced. We need another game changer, and do we have it?

We already tackled the disappointments:

• iPad disappoints
• better an Apple netbook than iPad
• iTampon

Now we think about the business side. It’s not going to kill netbooks or Kindle. From a cursory glance at the iPad specs, we don’t see it being useful to a lot of people. No multitasking, it’s also a closed where the only apps that would work will come from the App Store, and it doesn’t have an ergonomic design. It will be a pain to use for productive people, and even casual multimedia users and web browsers would find the size daunting for long periods.

So what was Steve Jobs and Apple thinking when they came out with the iPad? Surely, the makers of the iPhone and the brain behind iTunes and the App Store aren’t stupid. They have time and money enough to pass up such harebrained ideas as a “keyboardless netbook alternative.” If you’re one of those people who think Apple always has a secret world domination plan behind their products, then I’m with you and I think what I know what that plan is.

The Apple iPad is not a useful device, it’s not a productivity device and even as a portable multimedia device it fails to a significant extent. What it is, however, is what the MacBook, the iPhone, iPod Touch and all the iPods are not. The previously mentioned Apple devices are personal devices. You want it with you at all times, or, at least, as often as convenient. And you want to keep it with you, just you. You don’t want to share your iPod and you wouldn’t want someone, even a close friend, borrowing it–at least not too often anyway.

iPad is a portable iMac

So what is the Apple iPad if it isn’t like the iPhone or the iPod? In my opinion, the iPad is like the iMac in sensibility. Yes, you can buy one for personal use, but you don’t mind other people using it either. Apple iMacs at home are treated differently than MacBooks in that every member of the family is allowed to use it. That’s what the iPad is, I think. People will not buy it because they need it or because they crave for one (people are more productive with an MBP or with a Mac Pro than with an iMac. The iMac has always been about looking and being like a furniture than straightforward tech. Like the iMac, they will buy an iPad for the family, for the living room coffee table to be exact. That’s the best place for the iPad. You can throw away the aging New Yorkers and Time magazines. The iPad will make your coffee table more presentable and should be a more useful and less expensive alternative to what some people try to pass for a talking piece.

Coffee Table Decorations to Change Forever?

I think this is the strange genius of the iPad. It may not be good enough to replace other tech but it is brilliant enough as an Apple product to replace bric-a-bracs, bulky coffee table books and bank-account-killing artwork. The iPad is only $499 for the cheapest version. It can browse the Web, play videos and music and simulate a book like no other technology in the market. It’s also the perfect reception area device for events. Guests can log on via the iPad (attention developers, Guest Book iPad App needed). Welcome guests via video interface (webcam attachment needed) or have fun wth your school worksheets. Or be creative, developers, it’s your turn to surprise us.

There you have it. A relatively cheap and fun way to make home, school or office life more interesting to family memebers, employees and customers. The iPad isn’t simply tech; it’s a new way of looking at the non-essentials.

Unfortunately, it’s been confirmed that these two new UI enhancements are iPad-specific and wont’ be available on either the iPhone or iPod Touch. It actually makes sense though since the iPad does boast of a larger 9.7-inch display which provides a lot more touchscreen real-estate as compared to the iPhone and iPod Touch which only comes with a modest 3.5-inch touchscreen.

On a good note though, there is a possibility that the Apple iPad might be souped up with a camera in the near future as evidenced by the Take Photo option in the iPad’s Address Book when running the updated iPhone simulator in iPad mode. There might be other reasons why such an option is there, but we’d like to believe that they’ve already laid down the groundwork on the OS to support such a feature when the hardware arrives at a later date.

[via engadget]

Similar to when the iPhone first debuted back in 2007, consensus about Apple’s latest product, the iPad, is split. Some like it and probably most don’t, but I guess only time will tell if this will be another huge hit for Steve Jobs or an overly hyped epic fail for the company. Anyway, for those interested to know more about the iPad, we’ve now have its full specs for you.

• 9.7-inch diagonal LED-backlit glossy touchscreen with IPS technology (1024×768 resoltuion, 132ppi)
• 1GHz Apple A4 high-performance, low-power processor
• Capacities available: 16GB, 32GB, 64GB
• WiFi (802.11 a/b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR support
• 3G model: quad-band GSM/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900MHz), tri-band UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900/2100MHz)
• Digital Compass, A-GPS (3G model)
• 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack
• Built-in speakers
• Microphone
• (micro?) SIM card tray (3G model)
• Height: 9.56 inches, Width: 7.47 inches, Depth: 0.5 inches
• 25Whr lithium-polymer battery, up to 10 hours web surfing via WiFi, watching videos, or listening to music

Personally, we’re not too thrilled about the iPad (or iTampon as what others would prefer to call it now), and as we noted in a previous post, they would have been better off announcing an Apple netbook instead. Sure, a netbook wouldn’t have been groundbreaking, but hey, initial impressions about the iPad isn’t that stellar either. On a positive note, however, their new iBookStore looks promising though if only they could lower the price of books which I have high hopes will eventually happen in the future.

For those who missed out on the whole event and want to see Steve Jobs introduce their latest product to the public for the very first time, we also have the iPad launch video here.

[apple ipad]

You can find out more about the Apple iPad from these posts:

• Apple iPad introduced.
• iPad looks like it could’ve been better, an Apple Netbook.

Here’s a good read about iTampon, which is currently trending. I think “iTampon” is going to stay awhile.

Look at that thing. Though the Apple iPad isn’t exactly a monstrosity and the 9.7-inch 1024 x 768 screen is great to look at, I will be amazed if anyone actually thinks of using one in public. I mean who would be fool enough to type on the iPad on a sidewalk where everyone will stare at you like you’re the craziest Apple fanboy that ever walked? At one and a half pounds, the iPad is best suited for work on your lap. It’s not just a big iPhone, though it definitely looks like a big iPhone, but a mobile computer without a physical keyboard. Oh, I see some hospital staff carrying this–the price is pretty good at $499 for the cheapest version–while doing their rounds but Steve Jobs obviously didn’t make the Apple iPad for the medical and health care professions. So why make it in the first place? Two reasons come to mind.

1. P.A. Semi chips. Apple bought the company over a year ago and though it may not yet be able to replace Intel chips in the present MacBooks, P.A. Semi low-powered chips are well suited for the Apple iPad. Engadget writes that the device is blazing fast because of the PA Semi chip.

2. Tablet and E-Reader market catching fire. Though only the EReader market is actually taking in sizable customers, Apple may be thinking it can do to the Tablets what it has done to the mobile phone and maybe even do the same to the market–with the iBookstore App on the iPad–dominated by Amazon Kindle. The Apple iPad is designed to appeal to both markets.

Shulda made that Apple Netbook Instead.

There are reasons for the Apple iPad, but it fails in design and in its specifications. It may be able to take the lead in the Tablet or MID (mobile Internet device) market, but don’t expect iPhone- or iPod-type sales for the Apple iPad. And forget killing Kindle. Amazon learned a valuable lesson when they came out with Kindle. Customers are not willing to pay for books above $10. Although Amazon didn’t exactly succumb to $9.99 Kindle books, the prices rarely stray too far above the $10 mark. Meanwhile, the $14.99 prices per book on the iBookstore is too much for any reader who really likes reading and care for his eyes. Why pay more for the regular computer screen experience, which as most people would agree, has been a plague for readers since the invention of the computer. Don’t get me wrong, the iBookstore app is a wonder to behold, but it’s still a backlit screen you’ll be staring at for hours.

It’s not a computer!

The Apple iPad also doesn’t do multitasking and no cameras as previously thought. It’s cheaper than everyone expected for a new Apple device, starting only at $499. The iPad is obviously lovingly constructed. It’s as well-built as any Apple hardware in the market but the design is flawed from any angle you look at it. You cannot carry it unless it’s locked in your armpit or its inside a bag. You cannot use it for any length of time unless you lay it on your lap or on a flat surface. You cannot work on it productively, especially with no multitasking support and forget downloading applications not available via the App Store. Apple, I think, had a choice between making the iPad or making a netbook contender and they’ve chosen to support the wrong one.

Why no camera?

A touchscreen Apple netbook with a P.A. Semi chip going for the same price as the iPad will not only make Apple a lot of money but will help it create a new market segment for Apple products… something in the casual surfing, gaming market. This has been brought up before and the conclusion was that it falls too close to the iPod Touch market segment. I think that’s wrong. iPod Touch is basically a multimedia device. People I know use it for music, videos and playing with cheap applications. In the Apple Netbook, Cupertino could create a new market for pricier gaming and productivity apps. It’s not going to be a Kindle killer, but at least it will sell and it won’t be a health hazard for readers. Why offer an inferior and even dangerous alternative to the E-ink reader when you can ignore the market you will never beat anyway and create your own?

The only way I could think of that the iPad would be put to goo use is video conferencing or video calling. I could picture myself on Skype or on Yahoo! Messenger with the video for hours at a time. This is the only reason I’d want to bring a device with this form factor with me, especially with Apple’s promise of ten-hour computing.

Apple netbook love.

An apple netbook would’ve made more sense. I don’t see a future for the Apple iPad, even if they are able to make a more user-friendly second generation. The iBookstore is a good idea only if they can lower the price to below Kindle levels. There’s only so much bull**** Apple admirers can absorb in a year, and the new iPhone (hopefully, iPhone 4G with new hardware and no iPhone 3G S version 2 or something) is coming up next.

Apple iPad + AT&T 3G? Fahgettaboudit!

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